The Wonders of Fiber

Salut Nutrinutters!

Let's talk a little about fiber....

Is this something anybody out there thinks about? How about when reading a food label, does the amount of fiber a product have influence whether you purchase it or not?

Did you know that fiber plays a really important role in our health... and that even though the daily recommendation for an adult woman is 25 g and an adult man 38 g, the usual intake in the United States is  only half of that?? Here's why we should care:

FIBER'S AMAZING BENEFITS:

• Gives sensation of fullness, this is very helpful in controlling weight
• Guarantees proper digestion preventing both constipation and diarrhea
• Lowers blood pressure, cholesterol, inflammation and blood sugar levels in the body

How does fiber do all this?

There are 2 kinds of fiber: soluble (dissolves in water) and insoluble (doesn't dissolve in water).

The way in which the soluble fiber acts is by attracting water and turning gel-like during its trajectory in the body. This seems useless maybe, doesn't it? Why do I want my body to make gel, I have no use for that. Not true! This is great! Remember when you were a kid and used to play with these gel/slime toys?? (I believe these are called slime??)...if you would roll it around, you would observe a couple of things:

- slime moved quite slowly...

- it was not that neon color anymore...it picked up every possible dirt along the way....ick! now it's a dirty dark grey!

This is what soluble fiber is doing...it slows down digestion due to the gel-like consistency, giving you that sensation of being full for longer, also slowing down the absorption of sugar. This "gel" will also "drag" some of the bad cholesterol with it, helping eliminate excesses in our bodies.

Insoluble fiber on the other hand will help the movement of material through your digestive system by adding bulk to the stool...this is very helpful in preventing constipation.

Now I don't wanna overload ya'll with too much info  ;) ...today I just want you to learn a little about the importance of fiber and why we should be having more of it! 

Next week's post I'll have some great ideas for you on how to add fiber to your meals in a delicious way, deal? :)

See you next week!

-THE NUTRINUT-